Chapter 222

The official reason for inviting Chris was, as previously mentioned, an academic exchange to foster goodwill between the two noble houses.

“His position will be ‘temporary exchange disciple,’ huh? Well, that’s pretty common in the Union.”

The prestigious families of the Union often sent their disciples to other houses to broaden their horizons and improve their skills.

“But man, he’s going to have a rough time at the Gukdok House.”

Chris let out a low sigh.

His assignment was set for two months.

Just imagining how grueling it would be to accomplish his goals within that short span made his head spin.

“Damn it, I have to leave tomorrow with no time to rest in between. Why does my life have to be like this?!”

Suddenly, Chris’s expression darkened, and everyone around him looked puzzled.

“What’s wrong?” Nordian asked.

Without warning, Chris made an unexpected request.

“I have a favor to ask, Head of the House.”

“What is it?”

Everyone tensed up at Chris’s serious tone.

And then he said,

“Please open the liquor cellar.”

“…What?”

“We haven’t had the victory banquet yet, right? Everyone’s worked hard, so please let us drink and enjoy ourselves tonight.”

Of course, the victory banquet was just an excuse.

He simply wanted to party.

“Ah, whatever! We’ve all worked hard, so tonight I’m going to party like a dog!!”

You might wonder, “But he can’t even drink, so what’s the point of a banquet?”

There was a way around that.

“I’ll just mix the alcohol into juice little by little! Damn, I remember how the ‘Dark Gossip’ used to tease me when I drank like that. Never thought I’d end up in this situation.”

The ‘Dark Gossip’—a nickname for Lena—was known for diluting her drinks with juice because she was weak to alcohol. Chris recalled how her name was often teased for sounding similar to a legendary drinker in the Union.

“Anyway, tonight I’m definitely going to party hard!! Screw it all!!”

A stunned silence fell over the room at his sudden proposal.

But it didn’t last long.

Everyone burst into enthusiastic cheers.

“Woooo!!!”

“Long live the Grand Duke!!!”

“Let’s all drink ourselves to death!!!”

“Grand Duke, prepare yourself!! We’re going to pour you so many drinks!!”

Even Nordian chuckled softly before turning to Count Kazar.

“Count, as acting head of the house, I’m giving you your first order.”

“…Yes, Head of the House.”

Count Kazar, suddenly thrust into the role of acting head, bowed his head.

“Open the liquor cellar and hold the finest banquet in honor of the Grand Duke’s achievements. I emphasize—this must be the best banquet ever.”

Nordian’s insistence was not without reason.

This banquet held deep significance.

It was to celebrate Chris’s accomplishments and to assert his newfound authority within the house.

Count Kazar responded resolutely.

“Yes, I will keep that in mind. It will be the finest banquet.”

That night, a grand feast was held at the Gukdok House.

Chris was the undisputed star of the evening.

All the maids and retainers of the Gukdok House raised their voices in unison, shouting his name.

“Wooo!!! Long live Grand Duke Chris!!!”

“Grand Duke, you’re the best!!!”

What stood out was the sincerity behind their cheers.

There was no pretense—everyone genuinely revered Chris and liked him on a personal level.

“Here, please accept my toast, Grand Duke!!”

“Mine as well!!”

“Me too!!”

As the crowd of maids surged forward, Chris’s face turned pale.

They were rushing at him with full jugs of alcohol.

He felt his life was in danger.

“I have to drink it diluted, little by little!”

“W-wait. Everyone, calm down. It’s not that I’m avoiding drinking because I’m weak… I’m just not feeling well. And I’m still underage.”

“Ah, we don’t care! Here, drink up!!”

As a result, Chris passed out almost immediately after the banquet began.

“I… I should be partying… b-but… alcohol…”

He left behind these dying words.

The maids exchanged puzzled looks.

“Already drunk? No way.”

“Is he really as bad with alcohol as the rumors say?”

“Poor guy… He’s perfect in every other way but can’t handle a good drink. I guess even the heavens have their sense of fairness.”

“But what’s with the sleep-talking?”

“He’s saying he wants to drink more.”

Chris, frustrated at not being able to drink, muttered “drink, drink, drink” even in his unconscious state.

Feeling sorry for him, the maids placed cups of alcohol by his bedside.

“Drink to your heart’s content in your dreams, Grand Duke!!”

One by one, they set down cups until they formed a towering pile, as if performing a ritual.

“To the Grand Duke, who’s dreaming now—cheers!!!”

“Woooo!!!”

And so, the lively night went on deep into the hours (everyone except Chris).

But meanwhile, away from the festive scene at the Gukdok House, some chilling conversations about Chris were taking place.

At the Gukdok House’s main estate, Jinnok Castle.

In a beautiful garden deep within the estate, a man in his late twenties stood.

He exuded an air of nobility.

His gentle gaze was fixed on a butterfly fluttering among the flowers.

At that moment, someone appeared and knelt before him.

“Grand Duke.”

The unexpected title caught attention.

The official Grand Duke of the Gukdok House was the unattractive Hubert.

So why was this man being called Grand Duke?

There was a reason.

The man’s name was Fernand.

He was the son of Marquis Goras.

Unlike Hubert, Fernand was a prodigy with a natural talent for poison magic.

His level was an impressive upper 5-star, and he was expected to reach 6-star soon, making him the Gukdok House’s next great genius.

Though he was the second son, he was treated as the de facto heir, surpassing the official Grand Duke Hubert.

“The title of Grand Duke doesn’t suit me, especially since I’m currently being punished for my crimes.”

His subordinate glanced nervously at Fernand.

The reason for Fernand’s punishment was Chris.

Previously, Chris had incited Duke Huam to expose those who had committed grave sins within the Gukdok House before the Blue Stream Demon King, leading to their punishment.

Fernand was among those accused.

However, thanks to the desperate efforts of Marquis Goras’s faction, Fernand avoided severe punishment.

Instead, he was stripped of all official positions and treated like an ordinary demon.

Though he escaped harsh penalties, the punishment was deeply humiliating.

“Heh, Chris, huh? Quite impressive. I’d like to meet him someday.”

The subordinate swallowed hard.

Fernand smiled, but his eyes were cold and dark.

A chilling aura of murderous intent radiated from him.

Just looking at him sent shivers down the spine.

‘As expected of Marquis Goras’s son.’

Fernand’s terror wasn’t just his talent for poison.

He had inherited his father’s cruel temperament.

That gentle face was merely a mask.

The crime that led to his punishment was also due to his brutal nature.

“…By the way, I came because of this so-called Grand Duke Chris.”

“Hmm?”

“It’s been decided that Grand Duke Chris will be dispatched to the main estate.”

A sinister gleam flashed in Fernand’s eyes for a moment before he masked it again.

“I see.”

“They say he wants to learn the main estate’s poison magic… but I don’t believe it. He must be hiding some ulterior motive.”

No one at the Gukdok House truly believed Chris was coming just to study.

After all, two months was too short a time to learn anything substantial.

“Well, it’s fine. I wanted to see him in person anyway.”

Fernand grinned.

“What will you do?”

“Of course, I’ll kill him.”

Fernand answered coldly.

“And I’ll make sure he dies writhing in the most excruciating and miserable pain possible.”

A terrifying statement.

Fernand’s poison specialized in inflicting unbearable agony, so those who died by his hand usually suffered indescribable torment.

“But isn’t it risky to target the Grand Duke of another house?”

Poisoning him secretly was out of the question.

The circumstances would point to Marquis Goras’s faction, which was already under scrutiny.

They had to avoid such a reckless move.

“Don’t worry about that. I have a way to ensure no one in the Gukdok House will utter a word.”

“What is it?”

“I’ll exploit his arrogant nature.”

“!!”

Fernand twisted his lips into a cruel smile.

“I’ve heard he’s extremely arrogant and looks down on others. But in the end, he’s just a frog in a well.”

Of course, the Gukdok demons didn’t underestimate Chris.

They had been soundly beaten before.

Especially Count Sesia’s defeat by Chris was a huge shock.

‘But this is the Gukdok House. When it comes to poison, he’s still a rookie here.’

“If we create an opportunity to strike by using his arrogance against him…”

Fernand’s smile turned dark.

“Since it’s all caused by his own arrogance, no one in the Gukdok House will dare protest.”

Thus, deep within the Gukdok House, a conspiracy against Chris was brewing.

But those plotting were not limited to the Gukdok House.

Unexpectedly, the Union’s powerful nation, the Kingdom of Kalburn, was involved.

It bordered the Gukdok House.

For reference, the borders of the Magic Empire were as follows:

To the west, it bordered the Holy Empire;

to the east, the Karn Empire;

and to the south, the Gold Cross.

Among them, the territories bordering Gold Cross were Dark Maga and Extreme Poison Maga.

However, Dark Maga rarely clashed with Gold Cross. Their main enemy was the Four Kings Star.

Extreme Poison Maga was the complete opposite. They frequently engaged in conflicts with Gold Cross.

In particular, the most militaristic and aggressive states within Gold Cross were all aligned with Extreme Poison Maga, leading to frequent clashes.

The Calvern Kingdom was the strongest military power among these Gold Cross war states.

If the Law Kingdom served as the spiritual leader of Gold Cross, then Calvern symbolized its military might.

Backed by overwhelming strength, Calvern had sidelined the Law Kingdom and held the real hegemony over Gold Cross.

But lately, the atmosphere in Calvern had turned sour.

“You little brat, I’ll tear you apart!”

BANG!!

A heavily intoxicated, burly man slammed his fist down on the table.

He was Maximus, the Lion King—the ruler of Calvern and a 7-star Dominant-class knight.

Maximus was so drunk that his flushed face twisted with rage as he cursed.

“Damn that Law Queen. How dare she.”

Maximus’s fury and drinking stemmed from Olivia, the Law Queen and sister of Chris.

‘Ever since that woman became Law Queen, everything’s gone to hell.’

Before leaving the Law Kingdom, Chris had fed Olivia a wealth of information that could be used to exploit the weaknesses of Calvern and other military powers.

Not only that, he had hinted at strategies to manipulate those military states.

—Isolate the Calvern Kingdom.

For the other military states, they used a carrot-and-stick approach to win them over to the Law Kingdom’s side, but Calvern, the most stubborn, was left isolated.

It was a divide-and-conquer tactic.

Olivia executed the plan flawlessly, all in the name of ‘helping Chris,’ and Calvern found itself in a very difficult position.

‘That damn woman.’

Maximus ground his teeth in frustration.

But he couldn’t just draw his sword and act on impulse.

This wasn’t a magic empire ruled by brute force and violence—it was a coalition.

Legitimacy was everything.

‘I need to make a move.’

Maximus’s eyes gleamed with determination.

The simplest solution was war.

If a war broke out with the Magic Empire, the other states would have no choice but to rally under Calvern, the strongest kingdom.

‘I have to strike Extreme Poison Maga.’

It was a dangerously reckless idea.

Extreme Poison Maga was not a foe to be trifled with on a whim.

For reference, both Dark Maga and Extreme Poison Maga, if they committed their full strength, were capable of standing toe-to-toe with Gold Cross alone.

The only reason they couldn’t focus their full power on Gold Cross was because of the threat posed by the Four Kings Star.

If the Magic Empire weren’t torn apart by internal strife, the world would have long since become their domain.

In any case, Extreme Poison Maga was less threatened by the Four Kings Star than Dark Maga, so they could deploy much stronger forces against Gold Cross.

Their poison techniques were especially optimized for mass slaughter, meaning any large-scale conflict could result in catastrophic losses.

But Maximus had some surprising news.

“The Uiseon Clan has agreed to support us, so we have nothing to fear from Extreme Poison Maga.”

The Uiseon Clan!

They were the natural enemy of Extreme Poison Maga.

But the Uiseon Clan’s principle was to avoid involvement in worldly wars.

‘Lucky break. Of all times, there’s internal strife within the Uiseon Clan.’

If the Uiseon Clan lent their aid, they could neutralize Extreme Poison Maga’s poison.

There was more good fortune.

‘That damn Christian, who helped Olivia, is also supposed to be staying in Extreme Poison Maga. If luck’s on our side, we might even catch him.’